1 By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down; yea, we wept when we remembered Zion.
In those days I Daniel was mourning three full weeks: I ate no pleasant bread, neither came flesh nor wine into my mouth, neither did I anoint myself at all, till three full weeks were fulfilled.
The elders of the daughter of Zion sit upon the ground, they keep silence; they have cast dust upon their heads, they have girded themselves with sackcloth: the virgins of Jerusalem hang down their head to the ground. Mine eyes are consumed with tears, my bowels are troubled; my liver is poured upon the earth, because of the ruin of the daughter of my people; because infant and suckling swoon in the streets of the city.
And a river went out of Eden, to water the garden; and from thence it was parted, and became four main streams. The name of the one is Pison: that is it which surrounds the whole land of Havilah, where the gold is. And the gold of that land is good; bdellium and the onyx stone are there. And the name of the second river is Gihon: that is it which surrounds the whole land of Cush. And the name of the third river is Hiddekel: that is it which flows forward toward Asshur. And the fourth river, that is Euphrates.
Ye that have escaped the sword, go, stand not still: remember Jehovah from afar, and let Jerusalem come into your mind. -- We are put to shame, for we have heard reproach; confusion hath covered our face: for strangers are come into the sanctuaries of Jehovah's house.
And if ye will not hear it, my soul shall weep in secret places for [your] pride; and mine eye shall weep sore, and run down with tears, because Jehovah's flock is gone into captivity. Say unto the king and to the queen: Humble yourselves, sit down low; for from your heads shall come down the crown of your magnificence.
For I have eaten ashes like bread, and mingled my drink with weeping, Because of thine indignation and thy wrath; for thou hast lifted me up, and cast me down. My days are like a lengthened-out shadow, and I, I am withered like grass. But thou, Jehovah, abidest for ever, and thy memorial from generation to generation. *Thou* wilt rise up, thou wilt have mercy upon Zion: for it is the time to be gracious to her, for the set time is come. For thy servants take pleasure in her stones, and favour her dust.
And when they lifted up their eyes afar off, and knew him not, they lifted up their voice and wept. And they rent every one his mantle, and sprinkled dust upon their heads toward the heavens. And they sat down with him on the ground seven days and seven nights; and none spoke a word to him; for they saw that [his] anguish was very great.
And they said to me, Those who remain, that are left of the captivity there in the province, are in great affliction and reproach; and the wall of Jerusalem is in ruins, and its gates are burned with fire. And it came to pass, when I heard these words, that I sat and wept, and mourned for days, and fasted, and prayed before the God of the heavens,
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Commentary on Psalms 137 Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
PSALM 137
Ps 137:1-9. This Psalm records the mourning of the captive Israelites, and a prayer and prediction respecting the destruction of their enemies.
1. rivers of Babylon—the name of the city used for the whole country.
remembered Zion—or, Jerusalem, as in Ps 132:13.
2. upon the willows—which may have grown there then, if not now; as the palm, which was once common, is now rare in Palestine.
3, 4. Whether the request was in curiosity or derision, the answer intimates that a compliance was incongruous with their mournful feelings (Pr 25:20).
5, 6. For joyful songs would imply forgetfulness of their desolated homes and fallen Church. The solemn imprecations on the hand and tongue, if thus forgetful, relate to the cunning or skill in playing, and the power of singing.
7-9. Remember … the children of Edom—(Compare Ps 132:1), that is, to punish.
the day of Jerusalem—its downfall (La 4:21, 22; Ob 11-13).
8. daughter of Babylon—the people (Ps 9:13). Their destruction had been abundantly foretold (Isa 13:14; Jer 51:23). For the terribleness of that destruction, God's righteous judgment, and not the passions of the chafed Israelites, was responsible.